The statistics point to exports from Maine businesses as a growth area for Maine’s economy.

In 2012, Maine companies exported $3.1 billion in goods, up 72 percent from the $1.8 billion in goods they exported in 2000. Maine exports reached a high of $3.42 billion in 2011.

The Business Roundtable estimates that the share of Maine jobs related to trade tripled between 1992 and 2011. And national statistics show that export-driven manufacturing jobs pay 18 percent higher wages than manufacturing jobs oriented toward the domestic market.

More Maine companies are looking abroad as they look to grow.

“It really is a flat world today,” said Tim Hussey, CEO of Hussey Seating in North Berwick, says in a new BDN article on Maine exports. “The barriers are down. You’ve got competitors coming into your markets. There are opportunities in others.”

And while Maine is exporting more to its east and south, Canada remains the state’s largest trading partner. And “forest products” remains the state’s largest export category.